Caspian Border: First Spawn
by Venatici
Summary: Ensign Photonous finds himself in his very first battle. His very first spawn. How will he react? How will he perform? And how will he deal with the news of a mysterious soldier that is said to kill anyone by just looking at them? Faced with danger and C4 spammers at every corner, the adventure of Ensign Photonous begins with this first title "Caspain Border: First Spawn."
1. Introductions Arc: Notes

Introductions Arc: Notes

[This is something I've recently added, so apologies for those who didn't have the chance to read this and went straight into the first chapter without knowing much about what I plan to do]

The following four chapters (from "My (User)Name is Photonous" to "His Story") accumulate into something called the "Introductions Arc;" as the name suggests it basically introduces Ensign Photonous, Corporal Higgins, Corporal Niners, DeviantOne, and the setting.

As many of you will (or may have) realize, I've used extremely simple and straightforward writing. That was done purposefully as I thought simplicity would best suit the opening sequences of a story (of course that's just my thinking).

The next arc would be far more comprehensive and detailed regarding the events in Caspian Border: First Spawn. It will involve more than just the shenanigans we find in our average Battlefield 3 multiplayer match (but I'll still keep up the humor aspect of it)!


	2. My (User)Name is Photonous

[Please visit The Lobby (found in the drop-down from the select chapters section) for answers and info!]

* * *

Hello readers! Thank you for clicking on this fanfic link! Like how this is Ensign Photonous' first battle, this is my very first fan fiction! I like to do a lot of creative writing in my spare time, though I was quite timid to actually upload anything.

Anyways, this is a story that uses concepts and references from Battlefield 3. Yes. Battlefield 3. That awesome game with destructible environments. That awesome game where one can spam C4 while parachuting over a map. That awesome game where one can launch Humvees all the way across a map by placing a ton of AT mines at the right spot?! Yes THAT game.

So yeah I'm quite a Battlefield fan, therefore I decided for my first work to write a fan fiction about it!

It's actually more of a parody than anything else. Designed more towards the humorous side of things.

Reviews, feedbacks, and personal comments are welcomed! Tell me what you think! Do you like it? Hate it (I hope not)?

So without further ado, I hope you guys enjoy the very first section of the story, Caspian Border: First Spawn!

* * *

Caspian Border: First Spawn

A Battlefield 3 Fan Fiction Story

By Venatici

Prologue: Fear

The soldier desperately sprinted through the dark tortuous woods, with only the scintillating moonlight illuminating his path. Crickets sang their songs of the night, and the owls hooted in their own delight. There was nowhere to hide and he knew running was futile. But still he ran because he was right behind him.

He, who killed his entire squad in a blink of an eye.

He, who single handedly destroyed all their T-90 tanks, all equipped with reactive armor.

He, who wiped out his entire team.

Tears streamed down the soldier's eyes when he thought about that man… that monster…

Tightly gripping his AEK-971, the soldier halted and turned. He made his decision.

"You bastard! I'm not running away from you anymore!" he yelled.

The echo from his challenge resonated throughout the night. But no answer came.

He started trembling. His hands felt slippery and sweaty and became white from gripping his assault rifle too tightly. All the optimal attachments he had on his weapon served no purpose against him. The monster.

The crickets stopped singing.

The owls stopped hooting.

From the abyss of night he saw a figure with its face hidden under a helmet. He only saw the mouth.

"You… you… YOU!" voice cracking, the soldier leveled his assault rifle and aimed at the figure's head.

"DIE!"

The figure gave an inhumane smile.

The soldier pulled the trigger.

And from the voids of darkness in the night, a single bullet flew and imbedded itself in the soldier's head.

Chapter One: My (User)Name is Photonous

Introductions Arc

[Loading… loading… loading… loading…]

[SPAWN]

Ensign Photonous found himself in the middle of an outpost with steel fences aligning its borders and small empty buildings erected about. He didn't know what to do. It was his first battle… his first spawn. He saw other players, his teammates, scramble for military vehicles parked within the outpost.

_I should do the same! _He thought.

Running towards a nearby tank, Photonous found himself unable to enter.

"Hey what gives?" he demanded.

Suddenly the tank gave a low grumble and began to accelerate forward. The coaxial machine gun mounted on top of the Abrams pointed itself at Photonous giving him a tantalizing look, then turned away towards the azure sky.

"Hey what…" the machine gun blazed to life as it spat 50. Caliber rounds into the air.

"TATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAtatatatata"

The noise of the machine gun firing became fainter and fainter as the tank proceeded onwards into the battlefield.

"Who was he shooting at… serio-" "VROOM BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT"

Photonous was knocked over by the sudden appearance of an anti-air vehicle gliding overhead and blasting its 5-barreled Gatling cannon as it surged up the hill he was under, nearly hitting him in the head.

"Agh…" he groaned while cringing in a fetus position. Patting the dust off his shoulders, Ensign Photonous began to stand… when unexpectedly an enemy jet started making its strafe on him!

"AH SHIT!"

He stood and ran towards the nearest cover he could find; a thick tree.

"Damn it! Why can't I sprint?! WHY CAN'T I SPRINT?!" he complained in a hoarse voice.

The enemy jet, like an eagle with temerity targeting its prey, swooped down and unleashed a hail of bullets at him. However in the nick of time, Ensign Photonous was already behind the thick tree. He felt the heavy bullets ricochet off the bark and the entire tree shuddered. He feared that the tree would give way and he would die.

But that didn't happen. The tree endured.

Photonous let out a sigh of relief. That was his first near-death experience. No doubt there will be many more scenarios like that to come.

_All right then_, Photonous mused, _this is a conquest map… so which objective should I go take first? _Taking a look at his minimap, points Alpha, Charlie, Delta, and Echo were all neutral, indicated with a white color code. Point Bravo had a light blue blip, indicating that his own team had captured it. Points color coded red belonged to the enemy, and for the moment there weren't any present.

Photonous decided to take the nearest point: Echo.

"Do I really have to run all the way there…" he murmured.

At that moment a Growler ITV pulled over near the tree he was leaning on. The man driving it had a strict look. The look of authority. The person manning the machine gun at the back contrasted with the driver. He had a relaxed face, however Photonous had the feeling that the gunner was extremely trigger-happy judging from his hands gripping tightly on the weapon handles.

He also saw their names shown above them in green highlights. The driver was named DeviantOne, while the other was named Higgins.

_But wait, why were they green highlights? Every other player had a light blue color…_

"Ensign! What are you doing camping near a tree!" The driver, in a low commanding voice, demanded.

"Uh… I was just strafed by an enemy jet so I use-"

"NO EXCUSES ENSIGN! Now get in the Growler!"

"Ah. Uh. Yes!"

Photonous left the tree that saved him from having a negative kill death ratio, and ran towards the Growler. Of course he won't be the one driving nor manning the machine gun. The only seat open was the passenger seat that allowed a soldier to use his own weapon.

"Our squad will be taking Echo first, Ensign."

"Squad…?"

"Yes Ensign. Why do you think our names are highlighted green?"

"Ah right…" One full squad consisted of four people. Photonous only saw two.

"The other guy is campin' over at the rocks near our spawn point." It was Higgins who responded. His relatively high voice had a slightly southern touch to it.

"He's providing us valuable tactical intel. Now look sharp! We're approaching Echo!"

* * *

Echo was deserted. That was a good thing. Unless…

"Higgins!" DeviantOne bellowed, "check for any mines. Corporal Niners, are there any hostiles hiding here?"

Sergeant DeviantOne's radio buzzed to life, as a squeaky voice responded, "no sir I don't see anyone."

_Niners_, Photonous deduced, _must be the provider of tactical intel he was talking about_.

Higgins left the gunner seat and walked towards the flag, his M4A1 brandished. DeviantOne was behind him, holding an M16A3 with an ACOG sight. Photonous was about to follow them until the sergeant held up his hand, telling him to halt.

"Man the machine gun," he whispered, "though we don't expect enemies, if shit hits the fan you're providing us with suppressive fire."

The Growler was parked neatly near a hill overseeing point Echo. Without reluctance, Photonous climbed onto the gunner seat and positioned himself. He gave a silent nod to DeviantOne, and saw the two walk towards point Echo.

Point Echo wasn't particularly big. However, the antenna tower it held was the tallest thing in the entire battlefield. A small cliff formed a semi circle around it, and built near the cliffs were small empty warehouses. A white flag fluttered in the middle. The flag that denoted the control of a point. The flag that everyone fought over control for.

DeviantOne and Higgins placed themselves in cover while their presence enticed the flag to change from white to that of the United States of America's. Photonous watched and didn't exactly understand why just the presence of a certain soldier can cause the flagpole to undergo such a phenomenon.

The flag rose halfway. All was going well.

Then it stopped.

Photonous was confused. There were two of them positioned near the flag. _Why did it stop?_

It didn't just stop.

The flag started to go down.

When Photonous realized what had just occurred, he heard the sound of gunfire in the distance.

* * *

"Some provider of tactical intel we have here!" Higgins roared mockingly as bullets streaked overhead while he ducked under the cover of a concrete wall. DeviantOne was crouching right beside him cupping his left ear with his left hand.

"tzzTATATATATAzzzzTATAzzzch…NINERS!" DeviantOne shouted in the radio feed, "GOD DAMN IT NINERS! I thought you said it was clear of hostiles!"

"It _was_ clear of hostiles," Niners responded in a rankling tone.

DeviantOne cut the radio link to Niners and peeked over the concrete wall he was behind. Another enemy squad was positioned on the cliffs. They had height advantage over them. Attempting to move out of cover was suicidal as hostile machine gun fire kept them suppressed. It would only take one well thrown grenade to finish them off.

However.

On the hill where the Growler was parked, heavy bullets began to streak towards the cliffs chipping bits of rock and gravel. The enemy squad turned their attention away from the two soldiers pinned behind a concrete wall, and began directing their fire towards the hill.

"Higgins!" DeviantOne ordered, "NOW!"

With that command, a galvanized Corporal Higgins leaped from cover and out into the open while simultaneously changing his primary weapon into a large, green, cylindrical tube. He took aim at the cliffs and saw the head of an enemy soldier belonging to that of the Recon class. He knew immediately that the sniper was aiming at Photonous' head. While still in the leap, Higgins aimed the reticle at the sniper's head and fired.

* * *

Holding down the trigger hard with his teeth grinding, Photonous felt like someone was hammering down his entire body. His arms ached from the recoil, but holding fire and taking a rest now would mean him failing his squad. Bullet shells flew out of the chamber feed as he aimed and sprayed at the cliff edge after seeing muzzle flashes there.

Squinting his eyes, he saw a white light emanating near the edge of the cliff. It was rather distinct, and it certainly wasn't muzzle flash. Feeling uneasy, Photonous began firing in small bursts at the white glare.

Then, a sudden explosion.

The white glare was gone.

Releasing the trigger as the Growler's machine gun needed to cool down, Photonous scratched his helmet wondering what just happened.

* * *

DeviantOne sprinted towards the cliffs as Higgins fired the SMAW. He had to act fast; it won't be long until the enemy squad regroups.

Reaching the base, DeviantOne leveled his assault rifle to meet the enemy. It would be an unfair fight, three against one. But he had the advantage of surprise… and that was enough.

That is, until a soldier carrying a PKP Pecheneg started firing at him.

"AGH!" DeviantOne grunted as he dived into a prone while taking several hits.

"Every damn time…"

His vision went blurry and hazy. The bullets kept streaking past his head. Reaching for his waist, he placed a green medkit beside him that began to mend his wounds.

All he could do now is wait for either death or salvation.

Then, the sound of bullets firing stopped.

"Reloading now? HA!" DeviantOne jumped from his prone position and aimed his assault rifle at the…

"What..."

The enemy Support class was dead. Blood oozed from his chest.

Just then, a man holding defibrillators sprinted towards the dead body.

DeviantOne quickly leveled his M16A3 and fired at the man's torso. He tumbled with a loud thud; defibrillators still in hand.

Higgins emerged from the opposite side, the barrel of his M4A1 still hot as smoke emerged from it.

He gave a smile and pointed at the corpse of the Support soldier.

"My kill."

"Don't get cocky Corporal Higgins," DeviantOne said in a gruff voice, "arrogance kills."

Glacing at the two corpses, DeviantOne felt like something wasn't right. He knew the enemy sniper had his body blasted away somewhere… that makes it three…

"Hey where's the fourth dude? Don't they have a full squad?" Higgins asked as if reading DeviantOne's mind.

Just when DeviantOne was about to answer him, Higgins stared at the sergeant with a face of disbelief.

"Corporal?" DeviantOne asked, "what is it corporal?"

Higgins pointed behind DeviantOne, and DeviantOne turned.

On the topmost cliffs there stood a man with a gas mask. His visor glinted under the sunlight.

However, it wasn't the fact that the enemy Engineer chose to expose himself in such a dramatic manner that caused the two to stand immobile.

It was due to the fact that he held an RPG-7V2 and was pointing it right at them.

Underneath the mask, the Engineer gave a smirk and applied pressure to the trigger. They were both doomed.

Then.

"PEW"

The Engineer's head violently flicked as blood erupted from his neck. His arm flailed as he fell from the cliff.

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzchBOOYAH!" was the first thing the squad radio broadcasted after the conclusion of the firefight.

"DIDJA GUYS SEE THAT?!" The voice was high and squeaky.

"IT TOOK ME TWO MAGAZINES TO GET THE DAMN COMPENSATION RIGHT! TWO MAGS!"

DeviantOne didn't know whether or not to feel extremely happy that he survived or extremely sad that the one who saved his life was Niners.

"Squad!" DeviantOne shouted in the radio, "regroup! Niners, come here to point Echo. Provide overwatch from here."

DeviantOne and Higgins walked towards the flagpole. Their team's flag fluttered at its zenith.

Echo was theirs.

"vvvvrooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMTHUD!"

A Growler ITV crashed into the concrete walls of one of the empty warehouses. The driver rubbed his helmet while grumbling in pain.

"ENSIGN!" DeviantOne growled, "do you not know how to drive?!"

Ensign Photonous emerged from the driver seat. He only suffered a minor concussion though DeviantOne's ranting made it worse.

"Sorry… it was my first time. Didn't know the thing would be so fast."

He gave the Growler a desultory kick.

The Growler's engines erupted in orange flames.

"OH SHIT" Photonous panicked, "I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T MEAN TO BREAK IT!"

"S'all right, I got this." Higgins pulled out a blowtorch that hung from his vest. He approached the burning Growler as bright blue sparks flew while he repaired the vehicle.

DeviantOne bore a grim expression.

"Uh, what's wrong?" Photonous asked, "was it because of my driving skills? Hey I can improve you know. This is my first battle."

"No."

"What?"

"Look at your minimap."

"What do you me-"

"Look at your minimap."

DeviantOne said the last word while grinding his teeth. Photonous glanced at his own minimap and understood why.

Bravo and Echo was theirs.

Alpha, Charlie, and Delta didn't have white color codes anymore.

They were all red.

"Damn, they had this planned all along!" Higgins remarked after repairing the Growler.

DeviantOne considered opening the team radio to figure out their current situation. The original plan was for them to take Echo and defend it while other squads proceeded to capture their own assigned objectives. The higher the priority of each objective, the more squads were sent. Point Bravo had at least two squads sent there.

He opened the team radio channel while lowering his head to concentrate.

And he was bombarded with voices and static that sounded like a demonic hymn.

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzTATATATATATAzENEMYzJET! ENEMYzzzTATATATAzzzJEzzT!" "GETzDOW-BANGTATATATA" "MEDIIIIIICzzzzzARGAHHHHH" "HOSTILEzzMACHINEzGUNNER!" "THEzRAMPzzzzz-AMP! SHOOTzzz-IM!" "WHEREzISzOURzAIRzSUPP-PEW" "CALLzTATATATATAzzAzzzDICzzzzPLEASE!" "TATATAzBANGzzzzARGHHHHAAAzzzNO!" "SOMEBODY FUCKING HELP US!"

He switched back to the squad radio channel.

Raising his head, he looked at Higgins and Photonous with dark, piercing eyes.

"We're being screwed over aren't we," Higgins commented.

A man suddenly tumbled besides Photonous, his name in green highlights read: 'FriendlyGhost99999.'

"Uh… Niners?" Photonous asked.

"Ah…yes…Niners…me…ran…all the way…" his high and squeaky voice was accompanied by wheezing and panting.

DeviantOne extended his hand to help Niners up. He then glared at his squad.

Niners: Recon class.

Higgins: Engineer class.

Photonous: Support class.

And himself: Assault class.

The ideal combination with all four classes in one squad.

"SQUAD!" DeviantOne yelled.

They all straightened their backs as they awaited their squad leader to continue. Even Niners did so without hesitation.

"We cannot lose this match. Do you all understand? WE CANNOT LOSE THIS MATCH. We will carve a path to Bravo and we will drive them back!"

At the gist of the moment, Higgins laughed. All eyes turned to him.

"Sarge… ah Sarge… I don't think you understand this but we're just a lowly ranked squad. Why do you think they assigned us to take the easiest point to defend eh? We are just two corporals, you, and the new guy."

He pointed towards Photonous at the last word.

"We got shitty gear, shitty attachments, and you expect us to go all the way to point Bravo and save their sorry asses? I mean no disrespect Sarge, but we'll be more of a problem for them than an assistan-BAM"

DeviantOne punched Higgins squarely in the jaw. He pinned him down onto the ground and struck him again.

Gripping his collar, DeviantOne began shouting at his face.

"So you think we should sit our asses here then and DO NOTHING?! IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING?!"

Another punch.

"Do you think we should abandon our teammates just like that? Just like that? Just because we are a lowly squad and just because we got shitty gear? That we shouldn't help our team?!"

Another punch.

"We are a team, Higgins, A TEAM! Every squad in the team is a gear of a machine. If one gear fails, THE ENTIRE MACHINE FAILS! THE TEAM FAILS!"

DeviantOne was about to punch Higgins again until Photonus held his forearm.

"Enough."

DeviantOne looked down at Higgins' bruised face, stood… and threw a medkit at him.

"Higgins," Photonous began, "I think the sergeant is right. I don't want to ditch the team. Nor do I plan on sitting my ass here."

"Hey even though I'm a sniper I don't plan on sitting my ass down and doing nothing either!" It was Niners who responded this time.

Photonous nodded at Niners and DeviantOne. He then approached Higgins who was still on the ground, though his face has been completely healed.

"Even if we fuck up and die. We fucked up and died trying."

He held a hand towards him.

Higgins smiled for the second time.

"Ha you bastards…" he replied.

And he took the hand.

[END CHAPTER]


	3. As a Squad, As a Team

Chapter Two: As a Squad, As a Team

Introductions Arc

"Alright here's what we're going to do!"

The squad gathered around DeviantOne. Point Echo would be secured… for now.

"Our main objective is to aid our team at Bravo. But to do that… we need to cross point Charlie."

He pointed at the red diamond that indicated Charlie. It was right between their location at point Echo and their destination at Bravo. Charlie consisted of dense trees and had so many rocks that they formed their own small hills. In other words, a perfect place to ambush attackers.

Judging by the distance shown on the minimap, it would take a good full sprint to reach Charlie.

But Photonous couldn't sprint.

"Niners, you're providing us with overwatch. Charile would at least have one enemy squad defending it. So Photonous…"

"Yeah?"

"Since you're the only person carrying a machine gun, we'll find a secure location and you'll draw their fire."

It took Ensign Photonous a few seconds to comprehend what DeviantOne had ordered him to do.

"Wait WHAT. You want ME to become a bullet magnet?!"

"Yes."

"I just got here!"

"So?"

"I didn't even get my first kill yet!"

Higgins lightly patted him on the back, "don't fret newbie. This may be a chance for you to get one."

"You should be fine Ensign. All you have to do is draw their fire and make damn sure you don't die."

"…"

"Any questions?"

"No sir," Photonous responded in a degraded tone.

"Alright let's move out! Niners, we'll leave the Growler here to make it easier for you to rendezvous with us."

* * *

It was a short sprint to point Charlie though Photonous lagged behind. He still didn't understand why he was the only person who couldn't sprint. He knew that by simply moving his legs more quickly, he could sprint. But some unknown force was preventing him from doing just that…

"PHOTONOUS! DOUBLE-TIME IT!" DeviantOne called in the distance.

The Ensign felt fatigued though still he carried on. He couldn't afford to burden his teammates. Not after what he said to Higgins.

By the time they arrived near point Charlie, Photonous was covered in sweat while his squad members surveyed the area. They hid behind thick vegetation; unless the enemy had a MAV overhead or a TUGS deployed, their presence should remain unnoticed.

"The flag looks undefended…" Higgins remarked. That was true, surrounding the flag were small cliffs formed by boulders and rocks. The flagpole itself had a single empty container adjacent to it.

What really pissed DeviantOne off however, was due to the fact that the enemy's flag stood proudly at its peak.

"How the hell did they just take all these points anyway?" Photonous questioned, "did our commander just ordered most of our squads to take Bravo?"

"No," DeviantOne responded, "I was there in the briefing. At least one squad was sent to take each point and defend it after the former objective as been met. Point Bravo just had more squads sent to it than the others."

"Why?"

"Well it's on a hill overseeing all other points. Geographically, it's an important tactical asset."

"Oh…"

"Anyway here's the plan. There might still be campers waiting for us. Shit, there WILL BE campers waiting for us. So Ensign, you stay here and provide suppressive fire. Higgins and I will move to the left and flank that cliff; it's likely they'll be camping there. As soon as you draw their fire, Ensign, don-"

"Uh… Dev…" Higgins interrupted as he called DeviantOne by his nickname.

"I told you not to call me that!" DeviantOne struck back.

"No… sorry but you have to take a look at this."

Corporal Higgins pointed at a spot near the flagpole, just beyond where the green container was.

DeviantOne, squinting his eyes to see what Higgins was pointing at, lowered his jaw and tightened his grip on his assault rifle.

Intrigued, Photonous leaned over the rock face to observe as well.

And what he saw he will never forget.

"God damn it…" he whispered.

He saw four corpses all splayed about.

Four friendly corpses.

"Shit! I can still save them!"

In a single leap, DeviantOne pulled out his defibrillators and began to sprint towards the four bodies. Higgins emerged from the vegetation and grabbed DeviantOne by the collar to pull him back.

That was when the shooting started.

* * *

It was total chaos.

Bullets flew by as DeviantOne hid behind a sturdy tree. Higgins took cover behind a large rock while Photonous primed his M27 IAR.

"Deploy your bipod Ensign! We need suppressive fire!" DeviantOne ordered.

"Oh so that's what these two stick things are for?"

Using the bipod, Photonous found it much easier to shoot without having to compensate for recoil. He took aim at the elevated rock face opposite to them. Bright muzzle flashes erupted from its edges and bullets grazed the cover he was in.

"NOW! SUPPRESSIVE FIRE!"

"TATATATAAAAA TATATAAAAAAA TATATAAAAAA TATATAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

In a blaze of glory, Ensign Photonous pulled and held the trigger of his weapon. The bipod stabilized the recoil though he still felt the hammering from the stock. It felt like someone was piston punching his shoulder.

"Higgins, with me!"

The two sprinted to the left. Ideally, the enemy squad was too preoccupied with Photonous to notice them attempting to execute a flanking maneuver.

"TATATATAAAAA TATATATAAAAAAA TATATAAAAAAAA TATATAAAAAAAAA!"

"PEW!"

"AGH FUCK!" Photonous yelped in pain.

He was hit in the shoulder by a sniper bullet. His vision blurred and grayed. He could only hear the muffled sound of gunfire.

Withdrawing himself, Photonous soothed his bleeding shoulder and thought about the medkit DeviantOne always carried. Either the sergeant forgot to deploy it for him, or he didn't think he needed it.

_Yeah, he didn't think I needed it. _

He cursed and spat at the ground. Emerging again from the same position would surely mean a death warrant. He had to take care of the sniper himself…

* * *

Through the eyes of his powered scope, Niners scanned the firefight that was occurring. DeviantOne and Higgins were already about to flank the enemy squad, while Photonous began to crawl away from his original position while nursing his left shoulder.

_Damn what's the new guy up to now?_ Niners thought.

He turned his attention away and observed point Bravo. They were holding up quite decently considering the fact that hostile jets were periodically strafing them with rocket barrages.

But he knew it won't be long until they were all killed.

Then he noticed something strange coming from point Alpha. It was big, it gave off smoke, and he heard the low rumble it created.

It was a T-90 tank.

"Shit, is it heading to Bravo?" Niners muttered. If so, it would greatly decrease the lifespan of the defenders. However thankfully, it didn't approach the path that lead to the point.

Instead.

It was going where DeviantOne, Higgins, and Photonous were.

* * *

"TATATATATA"

DeviantOne shot a volley of rounds into the machine gunner's back who was proned near the edge of the rock. Photonous halted his suppressive fire; he'd have to question him for that.

The other machine gunner saw DeviantOne and swung his weapon over to meet him until his head exploded and blood squirted into the air. Another perfect headshot by Higgins.

Two Support classes dead.

Two left.

Reloading his assault rifle, DeviantOne heard a low rumble in the distance and raised an eyebrow towards Higgins in curiosity.

* * *

"Beep… beep… beep… beep… beep…"

"What's this beeping noise…" Photonous whispered to himself. It started when he began to climb the rock face.

He thought about it further until he saw a strange thing placed on the ground.

"Beep… beep… beep…"

"Oh so that's where the beeping noise came from?"

He gave the tube-shaped thing a kick. It exploded.

"What the hell!"

And then…

"HUWAAAAAAAH!"

A loud pitched battle cry followed by the slashing of a combat knife aimed at Photonous' neck.

* * *

"BANG!"

"Tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzch GUYS!"

"BANG!"

"GUYS! I spotted an enemy tank heading your way!"

"BANG!"

"Guys…?"

"A BIT TOO LATE ON THE FUCKING INTEL NINERS!" DeviantOne shouted in the radio feed. The T-90 tank was positioned outside of Charlie and unleashed its high explosive ordnance shells at them. They were both hiding behind the rock face as the shells exploded just meters away from them. Each shot hammered their ear drums and muffled their hearing.

"Higgins! HIGGINS!" DeviantOne shouted over the firing of the tank, "SEE IF YOU CAN GET A COUPLE OF SHOTS AT ITS BACK! I'LL DISTRACT HIM!"

* * *

"WHOA WHAT THE FUUU-"

Photonous ducked as the knife swung overhead. He jumped back and pulled out his own tactical combat knife.

The assailant wore light Kevlar armor and had a sniper rifle strapped behind him. He wore a dark green wool sweater underneath, and his fingerless gloves looked dirty and muddy. His face was wrapped and covered by fabric with only his eyes showing.

In other words…

"You look like a fucking ninja from the Anime shows I watch."

"HUUUUWAAAAAAH!"

The fucking ninja struck towards Photonous with a lunge of his knife. Photonous side stepped and struck low, trying to stab his kidney. However, the Recon soldier saw through him and leaped just as his opponent executed the stab.

"BANG!"

"What?"

"HWAH!"

"SHIT!"

Caught off guard by the sudden loud explosion, Photonous used his knife to block the slash meant for his face. Sparks flew as the two steel blades met, though Photonous realized that his opponent's knife had an orange handle to it and the blade was much more rectangular. He'll think about it later. For now…

"HWAH! HUAH! HWAAAAAAH!"

A slash to the left, to the right, an uppercut, a stab, the Recon soldier executed all those moves and Photonous managed to dodge them all.

"HAHA! ALL THOSE ANIME SHOWS I WATCHED WERE WORTH IT AFTER ALL!"

"HWAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"UHOOF"

Instead of using the knife, the ninja gave Photonous a violent kick to the stomach. Photonous flew back and slammed into a tree. His vision blurred and grayed again, however this time he could see blood.

"Ack…"

The ninja slowly approached Photonous… ready to claim his dog tags.

* * *

As Higgins sprinted away, DeviantOne emerged from cover and threw a grenade at the tank. It wouldn't do much, however it was enough to get its attention.

"BANG!"

Shrapnel flew into him as the round impacted the space near him, leaving behind a shallow crater. He deployed his medkit while bracing for another shot.

"BANG!"

"Ah shit come on Higgins!" he spat.

Peeking over the cover, he saw Higgins positioning himself near a small rock behind the tank. He pulled out his distinctive green cylindrical tube… and fired.

"PPHHHHEEEEEEWWWWWW BANG!"

The anti-tank round screamed as it propelled itself into the tank's rear and exploded into orange and red flames. The blast caused smoke to seethe out.

But it wasn't enough.

As Higgins reloaded his next round, the tank began to slowly turn its turret.

"Shit Higgins! Run! RUN!" DeviantOne screamed into the radio.

But run he wouldn't. Corporal Higgins was adamant and determined to destroy the tank using his own SMAW.

"Come on you bastard! I'M RIGHT HERE!" He fired another round into its rear. This time orange flames emerged from its engines.

"HAHA!"

Before the tank had another chance to fire, Higgins leaped from his own cover and began to hop…

Into the direction of the tank.

"WHAT THE FUCK HIGGINS?!" DeviantOne saw what was occurring and couldn't believe what kind of stupid act his subordinate was doing.

"BANG!"

The round missed Higgins by a small fraction as he kept frantically hopping towards the tank.

"BANG!"

Miss.

"BANG!"

Miss.

"BANG!"

Almost.

"TATATATATATATATATATATATATATA"

The coaxial machine gun mounted on the tank blazed to life as the driver had enough of Higgins and his bunny hopping tactics.

Higgins, expecting that to happen, pulled out his repair toolkit while simultaneously lunging into a power slide. He slid past the tank's skirt while jamming his repair toolkit on its side and pulling the trigger.

"SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSCHHHHHHH"

The blowtorch left an orange streak as Higgins ended his slide in a tumble away from the tank.

"…"

The coaxial machine gun pointed itself at Higgins but didn't fire… instead it had an aurora of confusion surrounding itself.

"KABOOOM!"

The death cry of the tank resounded in an explosion as Higgins walked away towards DeviantOne, blowtorch still in hand.

* * *

Standing up but cringing, the enemy Recon solider was just meters away and he was closing in upon him holding a knife.

Just meters away…

Meters.

Away.

"Are you shitting me?"

Photonous wondered why he didn't do this in the beginning and drew his M9 pistol and aimed it at his opponent's head.

For a moment… an awkward silence.

"TA"

The enemy soldier tumbled as the bullet pierced his skull.

"KABOOOM!"

The explosion startled Photonous. Looking over his shoulder, he saw what appeared to be a tank engulfed in flames in the distance.

* * *

"HIGGINS. WHAT. THE. HELL. WAS. THAT."

"Badassery."

"tzzzzzzzchhh Hey that was pretty badass, Higgins! I saw that stunt you pulled all the way from here!"

"See?"

DeviantOne turned away and approached the flagpole. His presence enticed the enemy flag to begin descending. Photonous slid down from the rocks to join him. The flag descended faster.

"Hey what happened?" Photonous asked.

"You don't have to know…"

Accepting the answer, Photonous glanced at the flag that was descending into the ground. As it reached the base, the flag immediately changed and began to rise.

"You know what's causing this to happen… Dev?"

"I don't know. Some weird unexplainable shit happens in this world," he responded with an annoyed but tolerating sneer.

Nodding, Photonous mused for a moment before asking another question.

"I was fighting this sniper just now."

"Oh?"

"His knife had a different appearance than ours."

"Did it have an orange handle?"

"Yeah!"

"Those are suppose to be the privileged people… so I heard."

"Privileged…?"

"I don't know, some form of title denoting themselves to be better than others. I think that's bullshit."

"How do they get that title?"

"They bought it at a ridiculous price."

The flag reached its zenith as they ended their conversation. DeviantOne walked towards the bodies of the four friendly soldiers whom he could've saved by applying his defibrillators…

"Rest in peace…" he muttered.

"Dev!"

It was Higgins who called out to him, "we gotta move to Bravo! Those guys won't last long!"

"Alright. Let's move! Bravo is just up that hill! Niners, I want you to arm yourself with a close quarter weapon and use the Growler to move here."

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzch"

"Niners?"

No response.

"Damn it. Okay we're moving without him!"

The three began to make their way to Bravo… and the only response they received from Niners was plain static.

[END CHAPTER]


	4. Battle of Bravo Hill

Chapter Three: Battle of Bravo Hill

Introductions Arc

Bright was the sun as it shone upon Caspian Border. Blue were the skies that engulfed all beyond yonder. The trees rustled as the light breeze blew and carried the smell of nature and its tranquility.

"PHOTONOUS GET DOWN, GET DOWN!"

Destruction as it was as bullets flew. Death as it reeked as soldiers bled.

"MEDIIIC!"

The flag of the United States of America fluttered high and proudly. With it, people that defended with nigh fanaticism.

"Over there! THERE!"

Determined were those that went against them… but determined are those that wanted to repel them.

"ENEMY TANK! ENEMY TANK!"

Welcome to the battlefield.

* * *

"DEV, I THINK THIS WAS A BAD IDEA!" Photonous shouted as bullets chipped and deflected off of what little cover he had.

Their squad made it to point Bravo by shooting their way through the backs of their enemies. Supposedly, twenty-four soldiers were now defending Bravo. In reality, only fifteen were alive.

"PEW!"

"ACK!"

Fourteen.

"SHIT! CLEAR! CLEAR!"

"BZZT!"

…and back to fifteen.

The other squads were frantically defending point Bravo. They were all ranked higher than even DeviantOne, with a Colonel Five leading the fray.

"Defend the eastern flank! We got enemies swarming in from point Delta!" The Colonel bellowed those orders at DeviantOne as soon as they offered assistance.

"WELCOME TO THE BATTLEFIELD, ENSIGN!" DeviantOne shouted back. He was using a large rock as cover.

Photonous had doubts whether point Bravo was worth it at all. Already two squads were completely wiped out. No reinforcements would be coming as their commander wanted to use Bravo as a flytrap: keep the enemy glued to Bravo as they take the surrounding points.

It was a brilliant plan on paper; it was a douche idea for those who actually had to hold the line.

"THAT DOUCHEBAG!" A soldier spat, his rank was slightly higher than DeviantOne's, "HE AIN'T EVEN A LEGIT COMMANDER!"

That was true. Currently in battles, commanders were only de facto. No formal post exists. Yet there had to be one person leading. The enemy obviously had a commander of their own.

"IF I SEE HIM AGAIN DURING THE BRIEFING, I'M GONNA-"

"PEW!"

The soldier's head blew into bits as a bullet found its way into his skull. Perhaps he was a bit… too excited.

"CLEAR!"

"BZZT!"

An Assault class revived the ranting soldier with his defibrillators.

"-SHOVE A FUCKING C-"

"PEW!"

"CLEAR!"

"BZZT!"

"-4 UP HIS ASS AND-"

"TATATATA!"

"…CLEAR!"

"BZZT!"

"-BLOW HIS SHI-"

"…"

The Assault soldier glanced at Photonous. He responded with a light nod.

"CLEAR!"

"BZZT!"

"HEY WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG?!"

* * *

The situation was grim for the defenders at point Bravo. No air support… no armor support… just pure manpower.

"Heads up hostile jet coming in!"

Photonous raised his head under the cover he was in and saw a jet in the distance beginning to unleash another round of rockets onto them. At least two other Engineers had what appeared to be Stingers…

"AW I'M OUT!" One of them shouted.

The other Engineer fired his Stinger. As the rocked flew true towards its target, the jet did not attempt to dodge. It didn't need to… it had flares.

His eyes widened as the jet went straight at him, unleashing its payload.

"JOEL!" He yelled, "NOOOOOOOOO-"

The explosion muffled his cries as Joel's body flew into the air and down the cliffs… unreachable by the revivers.

"FUCK! NO! JOEL!" He screamed.

"ARGH! YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"

He glared at Photonous, and a flashing bullet icon suddenly popped above him.

"AMMO!"

"What?"

"I NEED AMMO!"

"Uh…"

"Ensign! Your kit comes with an ammo box!" DeviantOne yelled over at his own cover.

"It does?!"

"GIVE ME AMMO!"

Photonous fumbled through his own equipment before finding a box with a bullet icon matching the blip shown above the Engineer's head. He reflexively threw it on the ground after thinking about deploying it.

The Engineer immediately sprinted towards the ammo box, and went about his own business in avenging his lost friend.

"Could've said thanks…" Photonous muttered.

* * *

Corporal Higgins was busy destroying the T-90 tank that was pounding them with canister rounds that came from the western flank. Already four men fell to the armored beast. Higgins assumed that it even had reactive armor due to the fact that the three SMAW rockets he had recently fired had little effect.

"Another volley! FIRE!" The Colonel Five ordered.

Three rockets flew at the tank, yet only a hint of smoke began to emerge from its engines.

In a matter of seconds… that smoke was gone.

"BANG!"

The tungsten pellets flew out of the tank and killed one of the Engineers. The soldier standing by to revive him had heavy wounds though that did not stop him from doing his job.

"CLE-"

"BANG!"

Unfortunately, that did.

"Ah shit… DO WE NOT HAVE A JAV?!" he yelled once more.

"They were all in Hotel squad sir!"

The entirety of Hotel squad was wiped out in the first rocket barrage.

"Well that's just fuckin' great! Jager!"

"SIR!" A Support class soldier responded.

"I WANT YOU TO RUN UP TO THAT TANK AND C4 HIS ASS!"

"SIR, YES SIR!"

With nerves of steel, Jager of Charlie squad sprinted towards the tank with C4 in his hands. Higgins and the rest of the soldiers defending the flank began to unleash all their explosive ordnance they had at it to distract it.

One person was even mooning it.

To any average tank driver, seeing a man carrying C4 running at them would entice them to pull back and attempt to kill the suicidal soldier with the main cannon.

But that wasn't any average tank driver.

Instead of pulling back, the tank surged forwards.

"Oh what the hel-"

Jager's corpse was crushed underneath the tank treads as it forced its way up the ramp.

"AH SHIT WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR AT MINES?!"

"They were destroyed in the rocket barrages sir!"

"FUCK! CAN'T YOU GUYS DO ANYTHING RIGHT?!"

Higgins, already knowing the ultimate result of the situation, turned and sprinted back to where DeviantOne and Photonous were.

Suddenly, a helicopter flew in low and turned its nose towards the eastern flank.

"Ahhhh shit! PHOTONOUS! DEV-"

The attack helicopter released its payload.

And the western flank was destroyed in a manner of minutes.

While the eastern flank, in a manner of seconds.

* * *

Ensign Photonous couldn't breathe. His head felt heavy… and… was someone calling his name?

He couldn't tell. All he knew that this was the end. His end.

Yet he was so young. So new. So full of potential and vigor. So full of youth and rigor.

But the battlefield doesn't care.

It doesn't matter if you're the nicest person in your team. It doesn't matter if you're the meanest and the most jackass person in your team.

The battlefield doesn't care.

It doesn't matter if you happened to be the one saving lives with your defibrillators. It doesn't matter if you're the one running around chucking medkits at soldiers who really need them.

The battlefield doesn't care.

Ensign Photonous realized this as he floated inside his own mind. In space. Away from reality.

He was going to die.

Because the battlefield doesn't care.

...

But someone did.

"CLEAR! BZZT!"

* * *

"Cough… ugh… cough..."

"GET UP! COME ON WE HAVE TO MOVE!"

"What…"

"WE. HAVE. TO. MOVE!"

Photonous found himself on the ground with DeviantOne frantically shaking his shoulders. Everything around him was in confusion and chaos; bodies were littered here and there, wounded soldiers struggled to stand, and a T-90 tank was just joining in.

"COME ON!"

Staggering, he stood as DeviantOne began sprinting towards a nearby rock while frantically beckoning him to follow.

"What… what happened?" Photonous asked in a phlegmatic voice as he stumbled beside the sergeant.

"Another rocket barrage from an attack heli," he deployed a medkit before continuing, "you almost died."

_And you too._ Photonous thought. DeviantOne looked simply horrid; blood dripped from his sleeves and mouth while wounds and cuts were seen on his face. The medkit however, a magnificent invention that could cure anything if one stands near it, began closing those wounds.

"DEV! PHOTONOUS!" a voice called out to them over the sounds of gunfire and screams.

"GUYS?!"

"Corporal Higgins!" DeviantOne shouted, "over here! HERE!"

Higgins saw the two hiding behind a rock and sprinted towards them. Photonous saw that even he was quite injured.

"How goes the western flank?" DeviantOne asked.

"LOST! BROKEN! Look Dev we can't keep defending this point!"

"BANG!"

The T-90 tank muscled its way towards the flag while firing its main cannon at seemingly random targets. Whole squads of hostiles were swarming in, finishing off the wounded and killing the stragglers.

"We can't just abandon this place!" Photonous tersely remarked.

"LOOK. We need to fall back," he stared at DeviantOne in placation, "NOW."

The sergeant lowered his head in thought, swore, and for once agreed with him.

"Colonel! COLONEL!" He called in the team radio. But no response came. He took a peek over the rock and saw to his disgust wounded and helpless men being finished off with their dogtags taken.

"AAARGHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The remonstrance was met with an Engineer sprinting towards the T-90 tank holding nothing but… C4?

"THIS IS FOR JOEL YOU BASTARDS!"

He tossed three satchels into the air as bullets shredded his torso. The man fell to his knees and with a sardonic smile, pulled the trigger.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOM!"

Like thunderclap, the explosion sent soldiers flying and staggering. A black crater was the only thing remaining of the friend of Joel.

"Damn," Photonous whispered, "shit we aren't the only ones left are we?"

They where the only ones left.

"TATATATATATAATATATATATATATATATATATA"

"AH SHIT!"

Bullets ricocheted off of their cover as an unbelievable amount of firepower was unleashed at them. But their rock held. The tank fired its tungsten pellets at them, for one shot would've killed them all. But their rock held.

"GOD DAMN IT WE'RE SO BONED!" Photonous cried, "WHOSE SHITTY IDEA WAS THIS!"

And then an explosion. Another explosion. And another. And another. Point Bravo was under a hail of rockets, but it wasn't intended for them. The T-90 tank was ablaze and hostile forces scattered to avoid the barrage.

An attack helicopter flew overhead, turned, and began making a second strafe.

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzch YOURS!"

The pilot was Niners.

The helicopter that nearly killed Photonous was hovering overhead before turning and facing the new enemy. Its gunner fired the heavy machine gun mounted beneath the nose, hoping to deny the sudden air support.

But remember. The pilot was Niners.

He fired another rocket barrage at point Bravo before guiding the helicopter directly at its hostile counterpart.

"TATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATA"

The gunner frantically fired before realizing to his horror, saw the enemy pilot eject. The empty hulk of metal was still flying straight towards them.

Before the pilot could realize what the other man just did, it was already too late to press the ejection button.

"Well played…" he whispered.

"BOOM!"

* * *

With their jaws hanging, Photonous, DeviantOne, and Higgins saw the two helicopters collide and explode in a ball of fire.

"Did he just…"

"Yes."

"The crazy bastard."

"WOOOOOHOOOOOO!"

Niners managed to guide his parachute towards where they were before landing.

"THAT WAS AWWWWWWWESO-"

"TATATATATA BOOM BAM BAM BAM TATATATATA!"

"Okay we gotta run! NOW!" DeviantOne screamed.

With renewed vigor, their enemies began to shoot them after recovering from Niners' stunt. A sniper bullet missed Photonous' head by a single centimeter when he turned and ran down a steep hill leading to a shallow river.

"TATATATAAAAA TATATAAAA PHHHHHHEW BAM!"

"MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!" he screamed.

Photonous was lagging behind as his squad sprinted past the river and into the dense forests near point Charlie. The sound of gunfire echoed in the distance behind them before stopping completely.

They were still alive.

Leaning against a tree, DeviantOne rested while shooting a glare at Niners.

"Where the hell were you?"

[END CHAPTER]


	5. His Story

Chapter Four: His Story

Introductions Arc

"Hey that was pretty badass, Higgins! I saw that stunt you pulled all the way from here!"

Corporal Niners was situated on top of a cliff overlooking Charlie. What remained of the T-90 tank was but a flaming husk.

"So what's the plan now?"

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzch"

"Hello?"

"tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzch"

"Guys?"

Niners tapped his radio but the only sound he received was static. He knew at that moment DeviantOne would be pissed at him, but usually the radio was always clear.

_What is going on_? He thought.

"No one's here."

The voice startled him as he turned and saw four men gathering around the flagpole of Echo. All Assault classes.

_SHIT._

"You two, check around the cliffs. Jay, stay here near the flag. I'll check the road."

_AW SHIIIIIIIIIT._

For all intents and purposes, Niners' close combat capabilities were non-existent. The sniper rifle he carried wouldn't help against four enemy soldiers carrying assault rifles. Fighting them was out of the question; he'd have to escape.

He then saw the Growler that his squad left behind, and had an idea.

* * *

"Nothing to report, Captain," a man said in a monotonous tone, "seems they're all at point Bravo."

"Excellent," the other person responded. He had a British accent and brandished an AUG A3 with foregrip, holographic scope, and heavy barrel attachments. The man held an aurora of nobility, for the way he walked was that of a high-class gentleman (or an asshole if you want to look at it that way).

"It's all going according to plan," he continued, "the Commander wasn't such a snob as I thought he'd be."

"Sir?"

"No, nothing. Numbers! Nova!" he called out over the two soldiers searching the rocky hills, "how goes the search?"

A figure appeared over the rocks with the name "13524678123" highlighted in green and made a horizontal cut with his left hand. Another, with the name "Instantsupernova" responded, "we've got nothing over here, sir."

"Good, good, good."

The Captain watched the flag of the United States of America descend and change into the flag of the Russian Federation. His job wasn't hard, really. In fact he didn't understand why that Commander wanted him to do such a simple task: take point Echo and hold it until further orders.

"We should be helping our comrades at point Bravo," the man beside him responded in a disgruntled tone.

"No Jay, the Commander assigned us this task and we will follow."

Lieutenant JayUber2 was a man of honor. Wielding the AK-74M, he preferred fighting without any attachments. He even refused to use squad boons, much to the confusion of his Captain.

"That Commander of ours is a damn incompetent."

"Watch your language Jay. I do not tolerate such use of vulgar words."

Jay gave a rude snort before turning around towards the flag. It had already deemed its allegiance to them, though staying and defending would be such a bore.

That was when he thought he saw something move behind a bush.

* * *

_DON'T MOVE. DON'T MOVE. DON'T FUCKING MOVE._

Corporal Niners was dead still when a man looked directly at where he was hiding. Sneaking wasn't exactly his forte, but neither was providing good tactical intel…

_Did he notice me. Did he notice me?!_

Niners slowly pulled out his grenade, ready to throw it if need be. That was his second plan; use the grenade to distract the enemy squad and rush towards the Growler. His first plan? To use the two items he deployed to distract them and stealth is way to the Growler.

The man slowly walked towards him, an AK-74M without any attachments.

_Well shit._

He readied himself to pull the pin until…

"Captain! Captain! We got something here you may want to see!"

* * *

"What's this?"

"This, Private Instantsupernova, is known as a Spawn Beacon. A hostile one at that."

"Ohhhhhh… and that?"

"That is known as a TUGS."

"TUGs? But there's only one."

"No. T-U-G-S. TUGS. It stands for Tactical Unattended Ground Sensor. It detects enemy movements around a small radius."

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh."

Silence.

"So what are we going to do with it?"

"Simple." The Captain drew out his G18.

"TATATATATATATATATATATATA BAM BAM"

The Spawn Beacon and TUGS exploded after he fired a full magazine into the two devices.

"Whenever you see these two things with red highlights on them, Private, you destroy them on sight. They provide valuable tactical assets to the enemy."

He glimpsed at Numbers and Jay.

"Now, let us head bac-," the Captain abruptly stopped his statement before looking into the distance.

"Sir…?" Jay worryingly asked.

He narrowed his eyes while grinding his teeth in response, "get our VDV. NOW."

Confused, Jay and Nova made their way to the parked VDV to oblige the orders of their now pissed-off squad leader.

"Numbers, stay here and guard the flag."

A silent salute was what came in response.

"Vrrrrrrrrrrroooom."

"Sir!" Jay proclaimed, "the VDV, as ordered!"

"Good. We're going after him."

The Captain pointed into the distance towards Charlie, which apparently was under enemy control. Jay couldn't see it at first as it was a small figure, though he realized immediately what it was by observing the dust trail.

It was a Growler ITV.

* * *

Niners pulled the Growler over near the flag post of Charlie. Four dead bodies were splayed near it, but even more were scattered around the trees and cliffs. He could hear the sounds of explosions and cries in the distance.

_Must be coming from Bravo._

He emerged from the driver seat before running towards the path that led to his destination.

"THUMP!"

"Huh?"

"BAM BOOM!"

In a ball of fire the Growler ITV exploded, knocking Niners to the ground as the impact shook his head.

"Argh…"

Attempting to stand, he staggered as someone kicked his knee and pinned their foot upon Niners' chest.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here."

The accent was obviously British. In fact it sounded like British nobility to Niners.

"A Recon class? Someone like you shouldn't be so close to the fight… my what is this?"

He picked up the sniper rifle Niners gripped weakly in his right hand.

"An Mk eleven? With only an eight times powered scope. Personally I believe the weapon denotes the status of its user. And you…"

Reaching for his waist belt, he pulled out a combat knife that had an orange handle.

"Seem like a lowly soldier with absolutely crap equipment."

The knife was now but a millimeter away from touching Niners' neck. He could feel the cold steel blade actually touching his skin and imagined what it must be like to have his throat slit. The thought sent shivers down his spine.

"Look I'm just Corporal…" Niners weakly remarked.

The man gave Niners a sarcastic smile before pulling the knife back.

"Well lucky for you, Corporal," he said the rank with a dissonance, "I have orders to take a prisoner back alive for interrogation."

He threw the sniper rifle away before two other men approached him. All Assault classes.

_Damn it! Those bastards followed me here?_

"Which means! We don't need to sit our arses defending some flag." The man pulled Niners up, holding him by the front collar.

As he talked, the flag in Charlie changed owners due to the presence of three men as opposed to one.

"Argh… PFFT!"

Without much thought, Niners spat at the douche. The man recoiled in surprise by the sudden disgustful act as the spit splattered onto his face.

"ARGH EWWWWWWWWWWW, MY GOODNESS!"

Frantically wiping his visor, the man pulled out his sidearm and aimed it at the prisoner's head.

"WHAT AN OUTRIGHT SHAMEFUL ACT! PERHAPS I WAS WRONG ABOUT YOU BEING LUC-"

"…"

His gun wasn't pointing at any head.

Frankly, his gun wasn't pointing at anything but the dirt ground.

* * *

"PANT PANT HUH HUHHHH PANT WHEEEEEEEZE HUHHHHH"

Niners sprinted as fast as his legs would allow him. He didn't know where he was going, but he couldn't just keep running. It was either Bravo, or hide. And at the current situation, hiding was best.

Stopping by a small hill composed of cliffs, Niners could hear the sound of an engine screaming and the call of an extremely angry person. The former halted any idea of running completely, while the latter made him hide inside a small rock crevice.

* * *

"I WANT THAT MAN'S HEAD!"

The VDV stormed out of the forests and began to circle Charlie. They knew their condemned prisoner couldn't have run off far; he must be hiding.

"WHY DID YOU GRUNTS NOT STOP HIM?!"

"Well it was kinda funny when he did that reall-SLAP"

"LIEUTENANT JAY?"

"Sir! No excuse sir!"

"FIND. HIM."

* * *

The VDV sped past the rock crevice and came to an abrupt halt. All three of them emerged from their seats.

"YOU! STAY HERE. WATCH THE VDV. JAY, WITH ME."

_He sure sounds pissed. _Niners gave a small smirk. He had a hobby for pissing people off and he found it quite enjoyable.

As the two soldiers walked away, the man left guarding the VDV looked inexperienced and new.

_Just like that Photonous._

Slowly, he emerged from the crevice and crept towards the VDV.

* * *

"Hmhmhmmmhmhmmmhm, hmhmhmmmhmhmmmhmhm"

Nursing his reddened cheek, Private Instantsupernova was humming a six-beat tune. Personally, it was his favorite tune. He'd hum it whenever boredom took over.

"Hmhmmmhmmmhmhmhmm- VROOOOOOOOOOOOOOM"

The sudden sound of engines startled him before he turned around and realized that the VDV was gone.

Rather, stolen.

"Fuck."

* * *

_Can't go to Bravo on foot… the Spawn Point must have something!_ Niners formulated a plan. He can't get to his squad by land… he must do it by air.

Speeding his way towards the United States Spawn Point, he found it devoid of anyone but two men near an attack helicopter discussing plans.

_An attack helicopter eh?_

* * *

"Listen if we just go around that point and provide air support from here, we'll be able to give them a window to run."

"But what about that AA? I don't want to get shot down without even firing a single shot."

"Well-"

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

The engines of the attack helicopter awakened as its rudders began to rapidly spin, readying itself for take off.

"HEY ASSHOLE! THAT'S OUR HELI! GET IN LINE!"

"DUDE! WHAT THE FUCK MAN!"

"Heh, sorry!"

With that, Niners took off.

* * *

It took mere seconds for the helicopter to reach Bravo, though it took a bit longer for him to reestablish contact with his squad.

"GOD DAMN IT WE'RE SO BONED!" He heard a cry.

"WHOSE SHITTY IDEA WAS THIS!"

Photonous.

"YOURS!" He angrily yelled into his radio before pulling the trigger on the joystick. One, two, three, ten, twelve rockets surged out of their pods and towards the ground of Bravo. He saw men that looked like small ants scatter, and he saw three other people huddling behind a rock.

"Beep beep beep Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep"

Niners saw the "LOCK" sign on his heads-up display before realizing that another attack helicopter had him targeted. Its gunner was also firing at him.

"Tch," he snorted, "I was never good at flying anyway."

Carelessly, he steered the nose of the helicopter towards its hostile counterpart, and ejected.

* * *

"And that's what happened."

Photonous was busy wolfing down his own military rations while Higgins and DeviantOne looked at him with incertitude.

"That sounds… like an interesting story," Higgins speculatively responded.

They were all at the Spawn Point, along with other squads that have survived the onslaught of their enemy.

"So… what now?" Niners asked.

"We wait for orders from the Commander. He's busy in that small building with the other higher ups." DeviantOne pointed at a concrete warehouse which had two Assault classes guarding the door. Whoever the Commander is, he must be one important person.

"For now though, we take a break."

Photonous swallowed the last of his rations before affirming with a slight nod. He peaked at his tactical map out of whim, before realizing their current situation.

All flag points were color coded red. And their reinforcements were dwindling.

[END CHAPTER, END OF INTRODUCTIONS ARC]


	6. Aria of Caspian Border Arc: Notes

Aria of Caspian Border Arc: Notes

One statement to describe the entire "Aria of Caspian Border" arc:

Shit gets real.

The US team are losing badly. The RU are pushing for the final offensive… you may believe that the US team will win by some miracle… or will they?

That's right. More badassery, more character development, and more themes that surround the Battlefield 3 multiplayer universe.

And as you will all realize, the format is completely different from the first arc (and I hope for the better).


	7. Leaders

Chapter Five: Leaders

Aria of Caspian Border Arc

A single dull light shone through the dusted window, illuminating the small room. Other than a single decaying wooden table, the room was devoid of any furniture. Five men stood around it, looking down upon the table with grim and disgruntled expressions. One of the men was much taller and older than the rest. His face looked frail and wrinkles plagued his forehead. He wore no helmet, and his short gray hair gave indication of his ancient past. His arms were long yet muscular for a man his age, and his hands were hard and his fingers were callused.

Stroking his chin, the old man gently spoke:

"No leader should put troops into the field merely to gratify his own spleen; no leader should fight a battle simply out of pique. But a kingdom that has once been destroyed can never come again into being; nor can the dead ever be brought back to life. Hence the enlightened leader is heedful, and the good leader full of caution."

He touched his chest as he talked and patted three small metal pins when he finished. No one knew what every pin represented, but everyone knew it meant the owner was a veteran of many wars.

"There are three ways in which a leader can bring misfortune upon his army: By commanding the army to advance or to retreat, being ignorant of the fact that it cannot obey; This is called hobbling the army. By attempting to govern an army in the same way as he administers a kingdom, being ignorant of the conditions, which obtain in an army; This causes restlessness in the soldier's minds. By employing the officers of his army without discrimination, through ignorance of the military principle of adaptation to circumstances. This shakes the confidence of the soldiers."

Lightly pointing at the first pin, he continued:

"It was here where it all began for me. Here, where I held my first weapon. Here, where I piloted my first tank and plane. The battlefield was large and relentless; we had far more tanks deployed than we do now. And the ability to revive wasn't discovered yet."

Pointing at the second pin, he continued:

"And it was here where I first commanded armies. It was here where we had a true Commander role; where the Commander made the difference between victory and defeat."

Pointing at the third pin, he concluded:

"Finally, it was here where they removed the post in favor of higher squad cooperation. Where pure firepower was more focused than tactical analysis. The battlefield was smaller; but the chaos was much greater."

He looked at the four men listening intently to him. The first man from his left had an M60E4 strapped at his back. His eyes were hidden behind black sunglasses, but his muscular chest protruded from beneath the vest his wore. His arms were thick and his hands looked like steel claws that could crush the plate armor of a T-90 tank. His face complemented his build; hard, straight jaws, strong cheeks, and a big nose. The rest was hidden by the brown helmet and bandanna scarf he wore.

The second man contrasted the first. He was the shortest and the most slender. His arms were like that of twigs, but his eyes told a different story. They were sharp, devious, deceitful, and upon looking into them one may say they have seen a true ghost. An M98B was strapped behind him; the large sniper rifle almost gave him a comical appearance.

The third man was fiddling with a combat knife. His height was average, his build was average, and his overall appearance was by all accounts, average. But the idea of him being your average soldier is the last mistake every person makes when they encountered him. For his knifing ability was the stuff of legends. Uncountable lives have fallen to his blade; rumor has it he never takes the dogtags of his victims. Strapped behind him was a SMAW and a SCAR-H.

Arms folded, the last man was perhaps the most venerable of the four. For his face bore the scars of past battles. He had one pin similar to the old man's; a bolded crimson "2." His skin was darker in tone, and he bore the saddest and darkest of expressions. An M16A3 was strapped behind him, with it an M320 grenade launcher.

"I called you all here today because we are in a crisis. We are dying. We are bleeding. We are loosing."

He pointed at a faded map placed flat on the wooden table.

"Delta and Alpha fell first to our enemy. Echo and Charlie soon followed. The plan of baiting them to Bravo failed. We didn't have enough soldiers to assault these surrounding points. All these men that died defending Bravo… died for nothing."

All four men silently nodded in laminating agreement.

"I am the enlightened leader Sun Tzu speaks of, and I will not allow these deaths to go in vain nor will I allow our enemy to destroy us in such a manner. We will take back Echo and Charlie, we will wrestle our way to Bravo, and we will destroy them at Alpha and Delta. Now is the time to launch a counterattack. And that was why I wanted you four."

He held a silence to allow his speech to sink in before continuing,

"We need leaders to lead our men to victory. We need skilled leaders. I need skilled leaders. Alpha squad! You are the spearhead of our counterattack. You will be the vanguard of it all."

The four men straightened their backs and threw their arms in a stiff salute.

"SIR! YES SIR!" They all said in unison.

* * *

Missiles filled the air, and bullets streaked everywhere. M1 Abrams tanks hopelessly defended the falling borders, a determined Anti-Air vehicle blasted away at oncoming jets, and loyal soldiers hurried about attempting to hold the line.

The United States Spawn Point was under siege. It was a calculated attack; first the jets came down with the rocket barrages, then the tanks fired from afar, followed by sniper fire to pin every man down. To top it all off, any vehicle attempting to emerge from the area would be immediately locked-on and destroyed by a Javelin. Yet these men still fought. Leaderless. They knew they were fighting a losing battle. They knew fully that ultimately, they will all die. Yet they still fought. Because every soldier knew that abandoning their team is the greatest of sins.

For one to begin to believe that they have been defeated, then truly, they have been defeated.

Ensign Photonous took that to heart when he blindly fired into the distance. He knew his bullets would do nothing, but the act of just pulling the trigger and firing shows the defiance of one to accept defeat. He was prone behind a jagged rock as Niners to the right of him fired his weapon. Niners knew his bullets won't do anything either for he has not yet mastered the art of gravitational compensation. But he too, won't accept defeat so easily.

DeviantOne sprinted towards them, one hand holding down his helmet while the other holding his weapon. Their short break abruptly ended when the first rocket barrage fell down upon them; incapacitating scores of soldiers that needed to be revived. Behind him was Higgins, hauling a SMAW over his shoulder.

"Niners! Report!" Higgins spat. His voice was forceful and held a tint of anger.

"Same as it was before! Pinned and screwed over!" Niners jubilantly replied. There wasn't a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Well keep firing! We'll break through eventually!"

They say hoping for too much may bring disappointment. And that was exactly what Photonous thought when the sergeant proclaimed his last statement. They're not going to break through eventually. They're not going to break through at all. In fact he didn't think DeviantOne believed in the words he said either. But still they fought; if not for the sake of winning then for the sake of their own team.

"INCOMING!" Someone hoarsely shouted, "TWO JETS! TWO HOSTILE JETS!"

The LAV-25 and the stationary anti air emplacement unleashed a volley of bullets into the blue skies. Photonous couldn't see the two jets as he looked up, but as he stared longer he saw two distant dots grow bigger and bigger for every second that passes. He saw their noses and ultimately deduced their strafe pattern.

The anti-air assets.

Explosions rocked the ground and threw Photonous off balance as the double rocket barrage obliterated the LAV-25. Nothing remained of it but a deep black crater. The stationary anti air emplacement frantically fired at the two jets but couldn't severely damage any of them as they flew past the Spawn Point.

"LAV DOWN, LAV DOWN! SOMEONE GET THE STINGERS!"

"We got a man down here! MAN DOWN! MEDIIC!"

"SHIT WHEN'S THE NEXT LAV COMING IN?!"

Calls for clarification resonated throughout the outpost; confusion filled the minds of soldiers as their only efficient anti-air asset was destroyed. It wouldn't be another minute before a new one is supplied by high command. A minute was more than enough for two jets with rocket pods to do their jobs.

"THEY'RE COMING IN FOR A SECOND STRAFE! TAKE COVER NOW!"

The two jets made a full turn and began to steady themselves for the second barrage. _This time_, Photonous deduced, _they want to kill as many ground personnel as possible. _He swore as déjà vu momentarily distracted him. This time a tree wouldn't be enough. Facing against a double rocket barrage… nothing would be enough.

He considered running before a bright flash followed by a missile exploded into the first jet. With it's right wing lost, the jet tumbled towards the second jet before both collided and formed a ball of radiant fire.

Every soldier on that day saw what happened. All heads turned to the origin of the missile; a SMAW held by an Engineer.

Eyes widened in shock, mouths dropped in awe. Heads crooked in confusion, and knees dropped in happiness.

The Engineer holstered his rocket launcher and pulled out a knife as three other men emerged from a small concrete room to join him. One had an extremely high body build, one looked small and slender, while one looked grim and sad. A fifth man emerged from the concrete room; he was old but looked as wise as a sage.

The old man spoke:

"Soldiers! Brethren! The time to act is now! The time to strike back is now!"

He waved towards the four men.

"I present to you, your new leaders! They are vanguard! And they will start by breaking through the siege! YOU WILL ALL FOLLOW THEM! TO VICTORY!"

The four soldiers disappeared without a trace, as if they all just vanished.

With an inaudible voice the old man muttered: "Military tactics are like unto water; for water in its natural course runs away from high places and hastens downwards... Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing. Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions. He who can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent and thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven-born captain."

Then in the distance, echoes of gunshots. Then screams, explosions, pleas for help and mercy filled the atmosphere.

Photonous glanced over the rock with his squad before seeing in the distance of what was once T-90 tanks, burning husks and bodies.

"Mother of god…" DeviantOne whispered, "Alpha squad…"

Alpha squad.

The squad of Colonel One Hundreds.

[END CHAPTER]


	8. Author's Corner: The Lobby

Author's Corner: The Lobby

This section is purely my medium for communicating with you guys. News, updates, info, my questions to you, and answers from me from questions in the review section can be found here!

Introductions Arc finished! The first chapter of the second arc will be out before next week (or earlier).

Do you guys like these teasers I do for each upcoming chapter? Again, I would love for some feedback!

Questions? Comments? Complaints? Feel free to ask! Or private message me if you don't want others reading it…

* * *

MY RESPONSES:

To Goobinshwapaaa:

The main characters are on the US side. I tried to hint that by describing how they used the default weapons for US. Actually I try not to use the words "the American soldier" or "the Russian enemy" because that sounds like I'm one siding everything. This story isn't about the two countries fighting each other, it's about how Ensign Photonous and his squad copes with it :D.

To Jabbibu:

I plan on using all Battlefield 3 maps as settings for my stories (including game modes!). I just happened to choose Caspian Border and Conquest mode as the first setting for this story.

Regarding writing about Battlefield 4, it really depends if people like the current Battlefield 3 story I'm writing. I don't want to waste people's time if they don't like it. If they do however, I'll commit to the audience's satisfaction!

* * *

Just a note guys, if you find any weird sentence structures or misplaced words, private message me it so I can fix it (I do edit my work but sometimes an error or two slips through).


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